From the margins to the masses: Standard practices and innovative uses of technology in augmenting different abilities of people in the world of work (NewWorkTech)

• Horizon Europe Grant No. 101177176
• Duration: 2024-2027
• Consortium Leader: Maija Hirvonen (Tampere University)
• Tallinn University of Technology Hop-On Leader: Aaro Hazak
• Funding: 3,599,375 EUR, incl. 540,000 EUR for Tallinn University of Technology Hop-On
• Consortium: Tampere University (coordinator), University of Copenhagen, Tallinn University of Technology, University of Warwick, Oulu University and various applied partners

newworktech.eu

The overarching objective of NewWorkTech is to examine how individuals with diverse abilities can participate meaningfully in digital and cognitively demanding labour markets. TalTech’s Hop-On contribution broadens the consortium’s scientific, interdisciplinary and geographical scope by introducing an economics- and data-driven agenda focused on mental health–related ability diversity. The aim is to generate new knowledge on how functional restrictions and neurocognitive diversity—particularly mental health conditions—shape individual labour market outcomes, entrepreneurship and long-term economic well-being in increasingly digital societies.

The NewWorkTech project has received funding from European Union’s Horizon research and innovation programme under Grant Agreement No 101177176. 

Individual Behaviour and Economic Performance: Methodological Challenges and Institutional Context (IBEP)

• Horizon 2020 Grant No. 952574
• Duration: 2020-2023
• Project Leader: Aaro Hazak
• Funding: 900,000 EUR
• Consortium: Tallinn University of Technology (coordinator), Aalto University, University of Helsinki and Tel Aviv University
• Recognised as a Success Story of European Union funded research

taltech.ee/en/ibep

This interdisciplinary project aimed to deepen our understanding of the links between mental health, individual behaviour, and economic performance. Bringing together scholars from economics, finance, psychiatry, and practical philosophy, the project supported collaborative research and capacity building across disciplines and career stages. Several internationally renowned professors worked alongside established and early-career researchers in a stimulating multidisciplinary environment. While behavioural economics has expanded our understanding of deviations from rationality in economic decision-making, the associations of mental health, neurobiology, and individual differences in beliefs and preferences with economic outcomes requires further investigation. Moreover, designing better policies and institutions—those that account for individual differences in wellbeing—can lead to a more effective use of human capital and improved economic performance.

This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation programme under Grant Agreement No 952574.

Institutions for Knowledge Intensive Development (IKID)

• Horizon 2020 Grant No. 734712
• Duration: 2017-2021
• Project Leader: Aaro Hazak
• Funding: 1,318,500 EUR
• Consortium: Tallinn University of Technology (coordinator), University of Lausanne, National University of Laos, Ho Chi Minh City University of Law, and Royal University of Law and Economics
• Recognised as a Success Story of European Union funded research

taltech.ee/en/ikid

The project aimed to understand the micro-level incentives and institutional mechanisms that encourage and facilitate knowledge creation and absorption, particularly in transition economies in South-East Asia. We examined various mechanisms and regulatory incentives, as well as the challenges in translating knowledge into economic value. Furthermore, we outlined potential regulatory measures to address market frictions and inefficiencies on the path to a knowledge economy.

This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement No 734712

Towards the Knowledge Economy: Incentives, Regulation and Capital Allocation

• Estonian Research Council Personal Research Grant No. PUT315
• Duration: 2014-2017
• Principal Investigator: Aaro Hazak
• Funding: 146,000 EUR

Intellectual capital is a critical driver of productivity, competitiveness, and long-term socio-economic development. This project sought to explore micro-level mechanisms that influence the transition towards a knowledge economy. It focused on identifying incentives at the individual and company levels that promote the enhancement of intellectual capital and stimulate capital allocation into knowledge-based investments. Additionally, we examined promising regulatory pathways that could enhance the use and accumulation of knowledge at various economic levels. The project also involved collaboration with experts in sleep medicine and occupational health.